Streamlined editorial workflow improves efficiency, cuts costs and leaves more time for creativity

Gent, Belgium, 19.01.2012 (PresseBox) -
Enfocus partner Na.Mi, based in Fossato di Vico in Italy, operates in the IT consulting and communication sector. Its services include infrastructure network and data transmission technologies, automation, system administration and networking solutions. Using Enfocus solutions, they have been very successful in streamlining the production flow of leading Italian newspaper publishers.

"Our customers are predominantly based in central Italy," explains Andrea Nardi, partner and IT manager at Na.Mi. "For the last five years we've specialized in vertical services for publishers, and two years ago we partnered with Enfocus, acting as a system integrator. In addition to supporting publishers, we also service companies that interface with publishers, offering Enfocus products in close collaboration with Technosolutions, the Italian distributor of Enfocus."

Investment drives newspapers out of the downturn

With margins being squeezed even tighter, newspapers are increasingly turning to automation to help them streamline their operations and trim costs. "The newspaper market is more competitive than ever, especially with the growth of online publications," continues Nardi. "Newspapers are always looking for ways to increase profitability, and they're realizing that advanced automation enables them to significantly reduce their fixed costs. Prior to extensive automation, a newspaper could spend a hundred thousand euro a year on file handling and sending files to print shops. With today's automation technology, such high costs are a thing of the past."

The Italian publishing industry is now far more flexible and has shown a greater uptake of automation tools. It's not just publishers that benefit from automation. Staff that previously had to work on laborious, manual tasks now has more time to focus on the creative side of their work.

Il Cittadino Oggi - CORRIERE NAZIONALE cuts costs with Enfocus

Il Cittadino Oggi - CORRIERE NAZIONALE is a national newspaper that's read in Siena and its vicinity. The publication's prepress is handled by Editrice Grafic Coop. In 2010 Na.Mi suggested the implementation of Enfocus Switch. The solution was integrated into the workflow, enabling Editrice Grafic Coop to automate every-day processes that previously were performed manually. The Enfocus solution manages the transmission and routing of jobs and files, and optimizes production processes.

In the past, production files were processed, stored and sent to the press center, but that has all changed following the installation of Enfocus Switch. "The newspaper saved two shifts, and greatly speeded up operations that previously had to be carried out in sequence, because the operator had to validate, open and send the files as they arrived," says Nardi. "This caused queues and slowed productivity, but with Enfocus Switch all this can be done in real time."

Another benefit is that staff that previously had to do these more mundane tasks are now working in more creative areas of the business. "Enfocus Switch speeds up everything computerized, freeing people to work on tasks that computers will never be able to do," adds Nardi.

Gruppo Corriere centralizes production with Enfocus

Gruppo Corriere includes several newspapers printed in central Italy, with its Umbria, Arezzo, Maremma, Siena, Viterbo and Rieti editions. The company handling its prepress is Iniziative Editoriali Locali. "Gruppo Corriere presented a tougher challenge, as the total number of pages created was ten times bigger compared to the previous project, and involved completely restructuring services," explains Nardi. "PitStop Server was already used to treat post-production files. But given the scale of the challenge it was necessary to upgrade to version 10, and we also implemented Enfocus Switch."

Gruppo Corriere's editorial set-up is scattered across three regions, in nine different locations, and its production was completely fragmented. Now everything has been merged into a single management stream, making it easier to control production and address any issues if they arise.

After this reorganization and centralization of prepress operations which began mid 2009, benefits were similar to the case mentioned earlier but, Nardi says, "since Gruppo Corriere has many processes, the benefits were even greater. Here scalability is very important: the larger the structure, the greater the advantages. In fact, if Il Cittadino Oggi saved two shifts, here they saved eight."

One of the most critical part in newspaper production is the time between finishing an edition of the paper and getting it print ready. "Automating this process gives a publisher much more time to review the newspaper, fix any problems and make last-minute changes," says Nardi. "Ultimately, it helps them produce a higher-quality product."

Il Giornale eliminates unnecessary software costs

Na.Mi also acted as a system integrator for Milan-based newspaper, Il Giornale. An older version of PitStop Server was upgraded to version 10, and Enfocus Switch and SwitchClient were installed.

"The newspaper enjoyed tremendous cost savings because Enfocus Switch enabled them to eliminate expensive software that was used for the data-flow between the newspaper and the printing centre," says Nardi. "Plus the training course ran by Technosolutions really helped them to capitalize on the Enfocus products and get the most out of their investment."

Reliable solutions for the newspaper industry

In the highly competitive newspaper industry, professionals involved in the production are always looking for ways to increase their competitive advantage. Enfocus provides the right tools for workflow automation for publishing products. The result is less manual intervention, saving time and reducing errors, crucial for the production and printing environments in daily business. Enfocus products enable users to analyze workflow efficiency, which is vital in an environment with high turnover, complex pagination and other specific requirements.

Enfocus NV

Enfocus provides modular and affordable tools safeguarding job quality and enabling automation throughout the complete production chain. Innovative solutions improve communication between design and production while enhancing productivity and predictability through automation of routine tasks.

Enfocus is a business unit of Esko and has its headquarters in Gent, Belgium.

About Esko

Esko is a global supplier of integrated solutions for packaging, sign and display finishing, commercial printing and professional publishing. Esko products and services help customers raise productivity, reduce time-to-market, lower costs and expand business and improve profitability

Esko employs around 1200 people worldwide. Its direct sales and service organization covers Europe, the Americas and the Asia Pacific region, completed by a network of distribution partners in more than 50 countries.

Esko is headquartered in Gent, Belgium, and has R&D and manufacturing facilities in five European countries, the United States, China and India.

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